Afrigather Hours after members of the home of representatives declared the Nigeria Air venture a fraud, Dayo Olumide, the performing Managing Director of Nigeria Air, has disclosed that the airplane that landed on the Nnamdi Azikiwe Worldwide Airport, Abuja on twenty sixth Might 2023, was a chartered from Ethiopia Airways.
Showing earlier than a Senate Committee on Aviation, Olumide mentioned the aircraft was chartered from Ethiopian Airways to launch the nation’s official airline. He additional revealed that the push to safe an working licence for the airline remains to be in its early levels.
The Nigeria Air MD mentioned;
“It’s a pleasure to be right here and to lastly make our place identified the place I can make clear all of the misconceptions relating to Nigeria Air because it pertains to the technical facets of it.
“As you already know this airline was launched with the brand in 2018. A number of issues have transpired since then that has nothing to do with me.
“I used to be invited final February, my mandate is to safe an air working certificates for the airline not essentially to function the airline however to safe a licence to fly. And that’s totally my accountability.”
After Senator Olujimi, Chairman of the Committee on Aviation, averred that the association of the Nigeria Air was shrouded in suspicion, Olumide responded by saying that it was employed and doesn’t require a license.
He mentioned;
“I’ll like to deal with your query first earlier than I am going on. The plane that got here in and left was a respectable constitution flight. Anybody of us right here if we’ve a vacation spot marriage ceremony in Senegal, we are able to constitution an plane.
“You don’t have to have a licence to try this, you simply constitution an plane, an plane you paid for it, will probably be introduced right here, take your passengers, and off you go.
“And that’s what we did. However on this case, it was to unveil. Ever since 2018, all you’ve ever seen about Nigeria Plane had been photos, and drawings, not the actual plane, and we thought it was time to point out what the actual plane will seem like and likewise to let shareholders know.
“You see we’ve institutional buyers, they aren’t in aviation, however they’re placing their cash for 10 or 15 years and to exit could also be on the premium. So they should see what the precise plane will seem like.
“So we introduced it in right here to point out them what the plane will seem like. Then the social media dimension got here into it. It’s an Ethiopian-registered one. Why is it Ethiopian-registered? To function plane in Nigeria, they have to be Nigerian registered; on fifth November. That plane was not on fifth November registered as a result of it was a chartered flight and it got here in with just some day’s clearance and off it went.
“For us to get that licence which is my mandate, we should amongst different issues have three plane earlier than the NCAA will give us a licence and people three plane have to be Nigerian-registered plane.
“There are 5 steps that one goes via to have a licence. We’ve got gone from the primary one to the second however the issue is that if you change what we name put up holders.
“Put up holder is a technical time period for director of upkeep, or chief pilot, if you change them and exchange them fully, it’s important to return to part one to interview them to be compliant to the authority, to the civil authority. However haven gone again to part one doesn’t imply you’ve accomplished something factor unsuitable. That may be a right and regular course of.
“So when this plane got here on a chartered flight, everyone mentioned we’ve launched Nigeria Air. There are discovered individuals within the aviation business who might have countered that when social media got here out, they selected to not.”
